Description

Oven-Cooked Lentil Soup Recipe ♥

November 27, 2007

Hearty lentil soup, slow cooked right in the oven at a low heat. A great option for anyone who doesn't have a slow cooker or isn't happy with the results of a slow cooker. (That would be me, too often.)

2007 Original: Does this soup look worth trading, say, for apple pie? That was the deal, a piece of American Apple Pie for the recipe for this oven-cooked lentil soup, all in fun, of course, since the recipe holder (hi, Rass!) was getting pie anyway and the pie-maker (me) often swaps recipes with Rass and his wife, dear family friends for more than 50 years.

And Rass' lentil soup is excellent! It's meaty and full of rich flavors. And it cooks by itself in the oven, no worries, for a perfect five hours. What comes out is perfectly cooked, hot and hearty, steamy and spicy, utterly delicious. It's perfect for cold winter days, a definite keeper.

2015 Update: Wow. So yeah, this is great lentil soup. I made several substitutes (roast pork for ham, the pork braising liquid for stock, chard stems for celery, a poblano chile for green pepper, skipped the wine, added some cumin by accident but then loved it, etc.) so think this recipe is flexible to your own changes. Back in 2007, slow cooking in the oven was a new concept to me, now it's a technique I use all the time! I just have better luck with the oven than with slow cookers.

In a large oven-safe pot such as a Dutch oven, cook the bacon until crisp, then set aside. Drain off all but a tablespoon of bacon fat, add the onion, celery, green pepper, carrots and garlic as they're prepped, stirring often to distribute the fat. Then, as Rass says, "Chuck the rest into the kettle, stir it up and put into the oven (covered) for five hours." Don't forget the bacon.

ALANNA's TIPS & KITCHEN NOTES SAUTÉING THE ONIONS ETC Hmmm. As I re-read Rass' instructions carefully now, I realize that he doesn't cook the onion-celery-etc with the bacon but instead cooks the bacon on its own, then "chucks the rest in". Rass makes a mean lentil soup, you won't go wrong with his method! That said, I've also learned how important it is to develop flavors by cooking deeply at this stage. So I just keeping cooking the vegetables as I chop them, there's no time lost. Also, I should note that Rass cooks his bacon in olive oil but to my taste, the extra fat just isn't necessary. HAM SUBSTITUTE The last batch, I "pulled" a pound of leftover pork roast, twas fabulous. I also used leftover juices from cooking the pork instead of wine and beef stock. LENTILS Use any kind of lentils, brown, green, black, any kind except red lentils – red lentils are too soft, they'd cook to mush. MEASURING THE WINE Don't get out a measuring cup, just fill one of the empty tomato cans halfway, splosh it around to grab the last bits of tomato. Save a dish!

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comments:

Yum! For those like me who don't eat pork, I recommend a plop of barbecue sauce in lentil soup -- it adds the smoky flavor, and a bit of tomato. Or, use smoked paprika (pimenton) to get that smoked bacon flavor into the soup.

Mmmm, I printed this out to fix for tomorrow night's supper... I absolutely love how you printed 3 versions of the nutrition information - if only all recipes were so thoughtful!- Astra Librishttp://foodforlaughter.blogspot.com

Alanna this looks wonderful! And it cooks in the oven!? I cannot think of a better way to spend a cold winter day than waiting for the oven to spit out a delectable lentil soup. (It's 12 degrees outside right now...brrr!)

Hi. I made this last weekend and it was delicious! I used leeks instead of onions (I precooked them a little bit with the bacon) and a large can of crushed fire-roasted tomatoes instead of the two smaller cans. It turned out great, thanks for the lovely recipe.

kaeotica
on
December 24, 2007

Delicious! I made this for dinner tonight to compliment the famous "No-Knead" bread; they went well together and the soup--amazing! But definitely do render the bacon before putting the veggies in; otherwise I imagine the veggies will brown too much while you try to render the bacon, or worse-you'll end up with globs of fat floating in your finished soup. Let that fat get going before tossing in the veggies into the hot pot :) I didn't add the marjoram as I never use it, so I didn't have any on hand. I topped the finished product with fresh parsley instead of adding the dried while it cooked. Lastly, I upped the cumin because I'm a fiend for it. Wonderful recipe, please pass my thanks on to your friend!

Can I seriously come over for dinner soon? ...... your recipe sounds so yummy.....

Anonymous
on
February 08, 2011

This is great. I used 2 cans diced tomatoes (didn't have a can of tomato sauce) and 5 stalks of celery since it was about to go bad. I used 4 strips of bacon (my calculations called for 9 and that seemed like a lot.) I gave it a B- that night, but today it's definitely an A! I paired it with Cauliflower Cream. 1/2 cup of each made a hearty, satisfying and surprisingly low-cal dinner.

Anonymous
on
January 28, 2015

amazingly yummy and easy

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